For Better or For Worse
by ashandpika
Summary: When the result of Edward's longing for excitement brings Bella's actions to beyond the edge of reason, it's up to him - and his unruly daughter Renesmee - to try and repair the fractured remains of his marriage.
1. Chapter 1

_Rosalie laughed lightly, blood dripping down her chin. She turned to face Bella, still smiling, the sun glinting wickedly on her teeth._

"_Isn't this fun?" she grinned, ignoring the spots of blood that fell onto her dress. "And I bet you taste just as good as your husband."_

Bella opened her eyes quickly – if her heart ever beat, it would be thumping right now. She was alone in the small house; Edward was out, doing whatever he did when he went out. Renesmee was out clubbing. Hopefully not people. She turned and glanced out the window, to the field where their sheep and cows were grazing, and furrowed her brows in a frown. How long had it been since Edward had taken any responsibility for the farm? He always seemed to be away, at 'management conferences', or 'client meetings', or whatever. She looked over to the table – he had left his briefcase behind! Again! It was eight thirty – if she ran, she could get it there on time. She pulled off her apron, grabbed the case and walked out the front door, stepping into the warm morning sunshine. She smiled, letting the bright weather lift her mood. _Quickly, his meeting starts at nine!_ She reminded herself, before recalling the address of the hotel he stayed at last night – they still had to keep up human appearances, and as Edward kept reminding her, it takes normal people more than ten minutes to run the four miles between their house and his office.

Bella composed herself, gripped the briefcase, and set off at a sprint, streaking across the fields and into the woods.

"Can you give me the number of Mr Cullen's room, please?" the concierge looked up at the pale, beautiful woman who stood in front of him, dressed in old jeans, a loose shirt and a straw hat.

"Uh… yes," he replied, slightly stunned by her curious appearance. "Room one hundred and seven. Shall I tell him you're coming?"

"No, it's alright," she replied, smiling in a friendly manner. "I'm his wife. He's used to me turning up unexpectedly,"

Bella crossed the marble floor to the lift and pressed the button for the seventh floor, then waited as the lift ascended bumpily to its destination. She walked a short distance down the corridor and stopped in front of a door labelled '107', and knocked loudly.

"Just a minute," she heard Edward call from inside. There was a short scuffling, and he opened the door in a towel, his copper hair tousled and messy as if he had just woken up. "-oh." He was taken aback at the sudden sight of his wife at the door, and his face changed instantly to a picture of surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"You left your-" Bella started, but was interrupted by the tall, blonde girl who stepped into view, wrapped only in a white bedsheet.

"Eeedwaaaard," she trilled lightly, smiling nauseatingly. "Who iiiiiis it?"

Bella reacted instantly, swinging her arm with as much force as she could muster and smashing the side of Edward's face with the heavy briefcase.

"Fuck off, you prick!" she snapped, her face a terrifying picture of betrayed anger. "Just go to hell – and bring your whore with you!" and with that, she turned on her heel and stalked down the corridor, seething furiously.


	2. Chapter 2

_As she ran blindly, her lungs burning with every stride, pushing on into the thick, black expanse of leaves, she tried to close her ears to the chilling voice that taunted her, coming, it seemed from every direction._

"_Every step takes you further away…" Rosalie sang hauntingly, her face appearing fleetingly between the trees. "And when you get back, where will Edward be?"_

The lift doors opened and Bella ran out, her boots thudding on the foyer floor. As she ran, she threw a look over her shoulder, secretly hoping that Edward was following her – clutching his towel around him, running with his other arm outstretched, yelling that it was all a mistake, that he really loved Bella, that it would all change now.

She was alone in the hall.

As the concierge came back into the lobby, holding a mug of coffee, he could have sworn that he just saw an incredibly beautiful, shabbily dressed woman, running out into the road, laughing crazily and yelling something about 'getting her own back'. Well, you meet all sorts of weirdoes in this city, he thought.

Renesemee rolled over and groaned as the peaceful morning erupted into the blaring rock music that she had set as her ringtone. She slowly reached out and grabbed her phone from the bedside table, pressing the green button and holding to her ear.

"….hello?" she managed, rubbing her eyes to get rid of the bleariness.

"Renesmee, you need to get home right _now_, young lady"

"Dad?" she groaned again and laid her head back on the pillow.

"Renesmee, just come home. As soon as you can."

She sighed as Edward hung up the phone, and looked over to the other side of the bed where… whatever his name was still lay sleeping. Oh well, he could do with sleeping for a little wild longer – he had quite a wild time with her last night. She swung her feet out of bed and began scrabbling on the floor for her clothes.

"Whoa, hey, where are you going?" damn it- her latest conquest was stirring.

"I have to be somewhere right now," she replied brusquely, as she pulled her lacy purple crop top over her head, and began lacing her boots up to her knees over the fishnet tights. His eyes opened wide with alarm.

"But- but my mum! She's going to see you!"

"Relax, kid. I've done this before- you think I haven't met other mums who've been pissed that I fucked their little darling?" she smiled knowingly at him and tweaked her leather mini skirt straight, before striding dramatically out of his bedroom and downstairs.

"Hey Mrs Mum, do you know where your son was last night?" she greeted a slightly bemused looking woman brightly, before striding quickly out of the house and out into the street, where her mind switched to the problem at hand – normally her Dad only called her in emergencies; it would have to be something big for him to suddenly summon her home.

What the hell had he done now?


	3. Chapter 3

"_Don't bother going back, Bella," her face glittered evilly in the blinding sunshine. "He doesn't want you anymore. Just save yourself the trouble." She grinned and leaned forward. "Wouldn't you rather stay with me anyway?"_

Bella wrapped her arms tighter around her knees, shuddering as another wave of pain wracked her body from deep inside her heart. If she was still human, this would be the point where she would be sobbing, taking huge, gasping breaths as the tears streamed down her cheeks. But she wasn't – she was a vampire. A cold, blood-sucking, soulless vampire. An immortal. Which meant that she had an eternity to look forward to- an eternity without Edward. An eternity of knowing that she wasn't good enough for him, that this other woman – the simpering blonde – was.

She was suddenly angry. How could Edward do this to her? How could he change her, transform her into this undying abomination, and then leave her to endure an eternity, filled with the pain of knowing that he had left her, that she was inadequate… in a spasm of anger, she tore off her hat, that stupid straw hat she wore at home, on the farm. On _their_ farm. A farm. Vampires farming. It was laughable, ridiculous. She clawed at her legs, at the torn jeans which hung loosely of her slim frame, tearing off the ragged denim, exposing her pale, shapely legs.

Suddenly, a faint sound hit her ears, alerted her heightened vampire senses. Even in her enraged frenzy, she shrank back into the shadows, silent, still, and alert.

The girl giggled as the boy led her into the alleyway. Both of them looked slightly the worse for wear; the girl's low-cut dress was rumpled, her hair was undone and she lurched a little in her incredibly high heels. Her companion was grinning stupidly but wearily, half the buttons on his shirt were undone his tousled hair looked as though it could do with a wash.

"But- but it's morning now!" she laughed, as the boy tried clumsily to kiss her, before giving in and kissing him back.

Bella watched, crouched behind a dustbin as the two teenagers proceeded to bang noses in their tipsy attempt to explore each other's mouths. She looked the girl quickly up and down – yes, they were both about the same size. And she wasn't to shabbily dressed, either. Bella leaned forward into a crouch, her legs tensed in anticipation, her eyes focused on the target. And quickly, instantly, like a rabbit darting from its hiding place, she sprang forward, her fingers outstretched like claws.

The boy screamed and leaped back instantly, turning to flee down the alleyway and into the street. Bella ignored him and focused on the girl, who she had pinned to the ground. The girl whimpered. Bella snarled.

"Take off your dress."

"I- what?"

"Take it off." Bella tightened her grip on the girl's neck fractionally. She would show Edward, she would show him that she was still something without him. That she didn't need him to enjoy her life, that she could carry on without any fragment of his existence remaining with her. That she still had the power to find someone else, that if she wasn't good enough for him, he wasn't good enough for her.

But first she needed some new clothes.

"Dad," Renesmee stirred a teaspoon of sugar into her tea and looked across the table at Edward, who was resting his head in his hands. "Dad?"

"Have you seen your mother today?"

"...no…" she could sense that this had something to do with why her father was so distraught. She wondered what- it would have to be something _seriously_ bad for her to have been called home like this.

"I… upset her this morning. And I don't know where she is now. I… I really… need your help." He concluded reluctantly, looking more serious than Renesmee had seen him in… well, ever. She sighed, knowing that it wasn't any good probing further – if he didn't want her to know something, he wasn't going to tell her.

"I guess I don't really have choice, do I?"


	4. Chapter 4

Bella strode blindly down the street, in any direction, as long as it was away from _him_. Her recently acquired heels threatened to topple her with every stride, but she kept going, kept walking, ignoring the few wanderers of the empty streets who turned to stare at her glittering skin anymore. She didn't care. Why should she? The volturi could come and tear her to shreds right now, for all it mattered.

She didn't have anything to live for anymore.

She broke into a run – a difficult achievement in these ridiculuous shoes and tight dress, but she managed to sprint at superhuman speed down the pavement, the shops and houses passing in a blur, travelling as fast as she could.

Which was why, when the man cannoned into her, she was knocked completely off her feet and tumbled backwards into an alleyway.

"What's your problem?" he hissed. "Do you _want_ us to be discovered?"

oOoOo

"Is there anywhere she might have gone? Does she have a favourite pub? Do you know where any of her friends live?"

"You're her daughter,"

"_You're_ her husband," Renesmee retorted angrily, crossing her arms. "so has anyone seen her?"

Edward frowned, as he honed in on the minds of the passers-by. "No, nobody's seen her." He turned to Renesmee, and eyed her outfit with distaste. "Renesmee- when is it _ever_ appropriate to wear a catsuit?"

She wiggled her eyebrows. "I can think of several situations,"

"I don't think PVC really suits you,"

She shrugged. "You told me to cover up, I covered up. Or would you rather I glittered like a five year old in a fairy costume?"

Her father rolled his eyes and pulled his mobile phone out of his pocket. He dialled a number quickly and held it to his ear.

"Who are you calling?"

"I don't think we can find her on our own," he said. "I'm calling Carlisle."


	5. Chapter 5

Bella instantly reached up to pull the man's hand away from her mouth, but her only clamped it down harder. He was strong, and his hands were as cold as Edward's. She looked up into his blood-red eyes, her own wide open in astonishment. She hadn't realised that there were vampires living _here. _He looked straight back into her face, his mouth set in a grim smile as his red eyes roved over her face, down her neck and briefly over the low neckline of her black dress. He had short, dark hair, ruffled up at the front and matted at the back. He had several piercings that she could see- three up his left ear and two up his right.

"Where are you from?" he demanded, moving his hand fractionally to allow her to speak.

"Why should I tell you?" she spluttered angrily, writhing and kicking desperately in a bid to escape his iron grip pinning her to the concrete.

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Get up," he suddenly demanded, springing to his feet and pulling Bella up with him. Even though she resisted as much as she could, he manhandled her across to a narrow door concealed among the dark, dirty brick and, opening it, forced her inside, followed her in and slammed the door shut behind them.

"Well, what has Sky brought home this time?" an amused, silky voice slipped through the semi darkness, and a bare lightbulb hanging from the ceiling flickered into life, revealing that room they were standing in was inhabited by several other people- no, not people. Several other _vampires, _their eyes the same unsettling shade of red as Sky's. Well, unsettling for humans, maybe.

A female with a pointed face framed by black curls reopened her magazine. "Oh, and I thought it was something interesting," she sounded slightly disappointed. Bella could tell from her voice that it was she who had spoken before.

"But she is interesting, Lyra," a tall, willowy male, his curiously coloured silver hair falling untidily over his forehead. "she's a vampire,"

"No shit, Sherlock," snorted Lyra, turning a page.

"But she's different," he insisted, the corners of his mouth turning up in a strange smile. "Look at her eyes - she doesn't have the same… taste as us."

oOoOo

"Right," exclaimed Edward, pushing his phone back into his suit pocket. "We need to get to Forks as soon as possible- Carlisle's calling the others, and we're going to prepare some kind of search party. Let's go home and get the car."

"Mum took it to the garage yesterday because I….accidently….cut a few wires under the dashboard," Renesmee reminded him.

"You- what? Alright, so-" he had a flash of insight. "We can go to- "

"Dad, it's fine, I can get a car."

"You can?" it suddenly struck Edward that he had overlooked the possible idea that his daughter could do anything useful. "Alright, I'll- I'll wait here," he stood at the corner of the pavement as Renesmee disappeared around the corner in her ridiculous outfit. He thrust his hands into his suit pocket and began tapping his foot in a practised attempt to fit in with the human population. Now that he was alone, to think… he thought about Bella. He thought about what he'd done to her, about what might happen now that she'd found out… the worries stirred and jostled in her mind. What if they never found her? What if she never forgave him? What if everything they'd done together, everything that had happened on high school, what if it all counted for nothing? He surfaced from his deep pool of thought as the sight of a sleek, black, expensive looking car appearing round the corner piqued his curiosity. The car sped down the road, pulling over sharply and stopping in front if him. The passenger door opened.

"Dad, get in,"

"Renesmee?" he asked, surprised, as he climbed in. "Where did you get this car?"

"A friend." She replied, starting the engine and pulling away from the pavement.

"A friend?"

"Yeah."

"Your friend drives a hotwired Alpha Romeo?"

She looked sideways at him and elevated an eyebrow. "You wanted a car, I got a car. And didn't Auntie Alice used to steal cars?"

"She didn't _steal cars,_ she _borrowed _a _car. _Once. And she saved my life,"

"And we're going to save Mum's life, so it's all fine."

"We don't even know that her life's in danger."

Renesmee gave him a look again. "So why are you freaking out so much?"


	6. Chapter 6

Bella stared defiantly into the crimson irises of the silver haired man. It was definitely silver, not grey- he could only have been in his twenties when he was changed. And yet, despite the fact that their eyes were all blood-red, none of the vampires seemed as skittery as any other blood-hungry ones she had met in the past; even Edward tended to act a little funny when he hadn't had blood in a while.

"I didn't know that there were any other clans around here," Lyra looked at her from the sofa, this time with interest in her eyes instead of indifference. "Where've you been hiding?"

Bella wrenched her arm away from Sky, who had still been holding her. "We're not a clan, we're a family. And we're not a family any more."

"A family of vampires?" the silver haired guy raised his eyebrows. He looked, Bella thought, a little like a manga character- pointed chin, tall, slim, and funny coloured hair.

"Like I said, not any more." She looked sideways at him. "And what do you mean, 'I don't have the same taste as you'?"

He smiled. "I take it you don't live _in_ the city, right? Or we'd have crossed paths before. So you live more in the countryside. And in the countryside you get animals, right? So you can eat the animals, and because they're wild nobody notices and you can keep coming back to find more. In the city, it's a little harder than that. The only other animals are pets – and don't even _try_ going there – and, well people. So, I suppose, you can guess which option we went for."

Realisation dawned.

Bella opened her mouth in shock, staring from one vampire to another at their passive, unruffled expressions.

"Oh my god- you- you eat- _people?_"

"Got it in one," muttered Lyra, turning back to her magazine.

oOoOo

"I assume you're not going to tell me what you actually _did_ to make mum freak out and run off, right?" Renesmee turned her head to look at her father.

"Not until- Renesmee! Keep your eyes on the road!"

She rolled her eyes and yanked the steering wheel to the left, narrowly missing a road sign, focusing back on the stretch of road in front, threading like a ribbon underneath the wheels of the 'borrowed' car.

Edward glanced in the wing mirror. If he angled his head just right, he could see both of them, a distorted image father and daughter sitting side by side in the car. Renesmee was growing up fast- he had never noticed before, but she looked almost as old as him and Bella now. He smiled sadly up at the grey clouds gathering overhead.

"Alright, Forks, here we are!" exclaimed Renesmee with sarcastic enthusiasm as the car sped over the bridge towards the buildings. "Where's Carlisle's house?"

"It's not really his house anymore," Edward reminded her. "Unlike someone, the rest of us don't grow old. I think the eternally young doctor would probably attract some attention, particularly if the rest of his colleagues are spending their lunch breaks checking that their grey roots aren't visible. Turn left here,"

The car made its way down a small twisty road, until Renesme swung it around into a familiar exit and found herself in the presence of the large house which, until recently, had been Carlisle's. She opened the car door and crunched across the gravel to the front door, which opened just as he finger was centimetres from the doorbell.

"Rensmee!"

"Alice!"

The two girls embraced quickly, before Alice broke out and held her neice at arms length.

"Renesmee, when is it ever appropriate to wear- "

"Don't ask," said Edward wearily, appearing in the doorwar behind his daughter.

"Edward!" smiled Alice warmly. "This is so exciting, it's like a family reunion!"

"..yes," Edward conceded grimly, ushering himself into the house. Alice turned and closed the door.

"Oh, I like your car. Is it new?"

"Rensmee 'borrowed' it,"

"Oh," Alice winked mischeviously at Renesmee.

"She seems to use your exploits as reason to justify breaking the law in every possible way."

"Lighten up," Alice danced past them, leading them into the living room. "Jasper?" she called. "Edward and Renesmee are here- and Carlisle's just pulling into the drive. Rosalie and Emmet will be here in a few minutes."

Renesmee opened her mouth to ask how Alice knew, before closing it again as she remembered Alice's gift. Jasper appeared in the doorway behind them, wearing his signature pained smile, and entered the room to join them.

"So Edward," Alice turned to him. "How did you manage to scare Bella away?"


	7. Chapter 7

Bella turned. Her face was glinting in the light from the flickering candle. She smiled, wickedly, and leaned forward.

"Goodbye," she whispered.

And they all died.

The End.


End file.
